Last time I posted, I lamented not having any news to talk about. I guess you really should be careful what you ask for. Looking at the time stamps, I guess it's been about ten days or so since I was last here. It feels like a lot longer. There is news. Stuff has happened.
The weekend before last, one of my cousin's sons got into a fight and got his head kicked in. Their local hospital was able to give him the all-clear on brain-injuries, but they weren't able to put the bones in his face back together, so they shipped him down here, stuck him on a drip and let him stew for a week, waiting for a spot in the waiting-list to open up, before finally patching him up and sending him home. What that means for me is that any time I haven't spent at work in the past week, I've been hosting distraught rellies or going back and forth from the hospital.
Now, before anyone offers any condolences, I'd just like to say that I'm not particularly upset about the whole ordeal. I'm not happy about it either, but, well, I know my family, and I know the town, and let's just say it was difficult for me to sound shocked when I got the news. It's hard to explain, but I guess it's the same feeling you get when you find out a long-time alcoholic you know has been in a drink-driving accident. It seems so tragic and random, and yet, it also seems like it was kind of unavoidable. On the one hand, there used to be this sweet little bub that I would feed and cuddle and play with, and it seemed like he could grow up to be anything; and on the other hand, well, like I said, I know that town and I know my family, and he hasn't been that sweet little bub for a lotta years now, and in a sick way I pretty much feel like, "Well, of course it turned out like this".
I don't really know how that last paragraph reads to an outsider, but I hope it paints an appropriate picture.
Actually, that's kind of it for news. Two paragraphs filled up an entire week. There aren't really any funny anecdotes that came out of it, or anything like that. No philosophical questions that come to mind. Just a rejuvenated appreciation for private health coverage and the fact that I may not be able to afford it for too much longer. Now that Medibank Private's been sold off, I expect premiums to rise quick smart.
Yesterday afternoon was the first free time I've had in a week, and I basically spent it clicking on Youtube videos in a zombified stupor. For some strange reason (which probably had to do with the previous week), I found myself cycling through a bunch of vlog type clips from people living with severe disabilities. I found it both interesting and informative, and it made me reflect on how wonderful a tool the internet can be for helping people to understand each other. One thing I noticed, is that many people with disabilities are keen to educate "the normals" on their sex-lives. I saw videos about props and aids and sex-enabling wheelchairs, and many many women doing variations on the theme "10 things you should never ever say to a woman in a wheelchair if you want her to have sex with you". I also noticed that absolutely nobody, including people with physical disabilities, wants to touch on the topic of sexual desires in people with mental disabilities. I literally heard one person say they wouldn't touch the issue with a ten foot pole.
Maybe this is a big enough topic that it deserves its own post, but what do you all think?
Also, people keep asking me if I've seen the 50 Shades Of Grey movie. First of all, it's a fucking movie now? Second, why would people assume it's the kind of movie I'd want to see? I think the last movie I saw in a cinema was the (fantastic) Judge Dredd flick back in 2012. Thirdly, it's a fucking movie now? Don't tell me, it's selling out box-offices all over the world, isn't it? See, this is why we can't have nice movies anymore.
And speaking of shit movies, I came across the preview for the upcoming Mad Max movie; and how fucked does this look?
Then I came across this Traffic Accident Commission 20th anniversary video (which is 5 years old now). Does everyone remember these? Do they still make them (I don't watch commercial telly)? How effective do you reckon they are/were?
Anyway, the main reason I mention it is because then I found the same video set to TISM's Greg! The Stop Sign!
... which is just magic, the way they go together. And then it struck me, that if you just watch the bit from around 1 minute 58, to about 2 minutes 50, you get what almost looks like a trailer for a Mad Max movie that I might actually want to see. Tell me that this little clip doesn't look far more exciting and engaging than the load of bollocks up above (remember to stop at 2:50).
And then I found out that there's a petition to get TISM to compete for Australia at this year's Eurovision Song Contest (Which means Australia's competing at this year's Eurovision Song Contest?). And it has 14,000 signatures.
And then I found out one of the blokes from TISM has a new album out. And it's pretty good.
And speaking of things that are pretty good, and movies that I actually want to see, I also discovered this preview for an upcoming Iron Sky sequel:
If you haven't seen the first Iron Sky, this may not seem clever, or even make a lot of sense. Also, you should hunt up a copy and watch it, sharpish. It's a fantastic little low-budget sci-fi parody. Slightly dark, slightly absurd, and just dry enough to appeal to my sense of humour. It's made by Finnish director Timo Vuorensola who also directed the no-budget amateur flick, Star Wrek.
Star Wreck is a labour of love that took 7 years to make. Which makes it at least 60% as good as that Boyhood bullshit. And it was released under creative commons, so it's free to share. It's also probably my favourite amateur movie.
And speaking of things I find funny, I also watched Insiders, and it looks like Abbott's prime-minister-ship is terminal. The animal is feeding on itself, the story has become the story, and everything he cultivated in opposition is coming home to roost.
But also, they played a clip from this:
... which comes from here. And, I dunno. It's not spot on comedy, as far as I'm concerned, but it's probably as good as anything I've seen come out of Australia since Fast Forward, which was back in what, 1992?
And since I've now been rabbiting on for several dozen paragraphs about shit I found on Youtube Sunday evening, I may as well chuck in every other bit of bullshit I can think of as well...
The big story in tech news last week was some low-end Lenovo laptops come with a very nasty piece of software on them that's supposed to inject extra ads into web pages, but inadvertently cracks web-browser security, leaving users wide open to all manner of scams and attacks.
The moral of this story is that, if you're buying a new computer, and you have the option to get one of those Windows Signature machines that comes without all the extra crap on it, it might well be worth it, even if it costs a few extra bob. Even better is installing your own software once you get it home, though I understand this might not be possible for most people.
Finally, I'm introducing a new, optional segment, that I'm tentatively calling Crackpot Corner; which is where I'm going to ask questions, and try to make sense of shit I see in the media which may look correct at first, but then kind of seems like bullshit the more I think about it.
7 comments :
I'm coming back I have lots to say but no time right now.
Looking forward to it, Melbs.
Sorry to hear about your cousin's kid but yeah, I get what you mean about knowing your family and not being surprised it happened. It doesn't shock me, anyone who's lived even a little tiny bit knows how the world spins, don't you think? Glad he's ok though. And you never know. Might be some learning in what happened? To him? To others around him? Or is that too Pollyanna?
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Interesting about the sex and disability thing, especially sex and people with mental illness. I guess there's always going to be some sort of prejudice against one group even as other groups find their voices and are empowered. Who speaks for the mentally ill though, there is such a stigma still around it.
In one of my classes last week there was a girl in a wheelchair. Year 10 students so they were all like 15 maybe 16. We were talking about pleasure and female response, and I thought to myself if I talked about disability and sex it would be so obvious and possibly interpreted as tokenistic. SO I didn't say anything, not that I ever touch on that. But maybe I should educate myself and slip in a few key messages to be more inclusive, eg everyone has the right to live a sexual life if they want to. (First I'd need to think about whether I agree with this blanket statement. What if a person is only attracted to children, or animals. Then I don't believe they have the right to live a sexual life in their preferred way.) Hmmm...
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50 Shades. I don't know. My biggest surprise about it was that the female role, the receiver of said BDSM, is Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson's daughter. WEIRD.
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Private health insurance, we have it, don't really use it, but I know as soon as we let it drop something would come up. Might be time to drop the kids off, once they get to a certain age. What do you think? We need it as getting older but once the kids are in their twenties then, whatever I reckon... I didn't have it in my twenties and thirties. Only got it once with Clokes. Gave birth and everything through the public system. It was fine.
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I don't see tv commercials any more but do remember those TAC ads. And we looked at Greg the Stop Sign just recently too, when we saw the petition for TISM at Eurovision. Yes I signed it. Would have loved to see that. We recently caught up on the Countdown special, it was REALLY GOOD. Did you see it? So nostalgic, I loved it.
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Politics, Russian or Australian: ...
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Sadly, I doubt there's going to be much learning or growth. You never know though, I suppose. As you say, maybe one of the other rellies might be changed for the better by this. It's not beyond the realm of possibility, I guess.
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It's an interesting thing about the girl in your class. I think if you had brought it up, it would've probably been awkward, uncomfortable, and embarrassing for the young lass, partly because anything that singles you out at that age is awkward, uncomfortable, and embarrassing. BUT there's probably a good chance that it would stick in her head and be beneficial when she got older. So it's a calculated trade-off, I guess.
From what I heard, the issue with mental disability seems to be around the notion of informed consent, and to what degree a horny person with mental disability can give it. Something else to think about, perhaps.
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I've heard quite a few people say they find it weird that Melanie Griffith's daughter is in the 50 Shades film, but I don't really understand why. Is it that she's got a daughter in the business, or the particular role? And in either case, what's the strange part?
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Realistically, it's healthy paranoid people like us that keep private health insurance in business. But watching a young man sit on the public waiting list for a week with a smashed skull, is probably enough to keep someone like me paranoid. I have a sense that the public system isn't anywhere near what it used to be. At least, not when it comes to capacity issues.
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Like many things on telly these days, I thought the Countdown special looked good, taped it, and now it sits unwatched on teh hard drives.
Yes, you're probably right but it might make someone else shift a little.
Saw something awesome about consent the other day. I'm going to incorporate into classes. Read here:
http://www.theloop.ca/this-woman-just-explained-consent-with-the-most-perfect-metaphor/
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Re the Griffiths/Johnson kid I think it was more that I didn't think she'd be old enough but turns out she's older than I thought. I thought it was the one Griffiths had with her last hubby, the Spanish dude, can't think of his name. Ah Antonio Banderas. Cause Griffiths and I were pregnant at the same time and I thought THAT kid was the one, but no. We were pregnant with Madonna as well. And Paula Yates. It was a vintage year, 1996.
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Really fuck, they still make him wait? I think my argument is: but they won't let you die, right? Do you reckon that's still the case? Do you think it was the location rather than waiting lists?
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We had it taped for AGES and then the other night I just said let's watch, and we did and it was good. But as always, we must prioritise.
HEY not too long to GoT. Excited? You're up to date, right?
I found that article a bit frustrating, actually. It talks about how simple the issue of consent is, but then it skips the one thing I think of as being THE big point of confusion around the topic:
When is it not okay to give someone a cup of tea, even when they say they really want one?
Obviously there is an age limit. I shouldn't be going around giving cups of tea to 14 and 15 year-old boys, for example. But what about when there are various levels of intoxication involved? And what about mental illness? If I get dementia, should my tea-drinking days be over, whether I want them to be or not?
The picture at the bottom was excellent though. I liked it so much I saved it.
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It seriously weirds me out knowing that there are fully grown adult people walking this earth who were born in 1996.
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I think in most cases they wouldn't let you die in a public hospital. But the longer you spend laying in a hospital with a serious injury, the greater the risk of infection or some other complication.
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Yes, I'm fully up to date with GoT. Not sure whether to follow it weekly, or have another marathon (binge(ugh)) this year. What's the premiere date? Funnily, even though I'm looking forward to it, I can't say I'm particularly excited. The Aria & Hound Show and the trial of Dinklage was so good, maybe I subconsciously feel like the high-water-mark's been passed. My gut says this year might be spent fleshing out some of the other characters a bit. Sansa & Ladyfinger; the red witch, Grumble-bum Beratheon, and his little crew; The Greyjoys & the Man-flayers; Harry Potter & his mates living under the tree; and of course John Snow and Dragon Lady.
We'll see, I suppose. When's the new season of OITNB too, by the way?
Yes you are very right about that point, because as you say it's maybe the stickiest part of negotiating consent.
Well, I don't know that the 1996ers are fully grown adult people. Physically maybe... but my girl is still very much in the childhood camp in many ways. And doesn't seem to want to move from it. Which is ok. No rush I don't think, and she's lucky there's no pressure for her to step out of that world fully and quickly into AdultWorld.
Yes, true about lying on a trolley in a corridor or something. At least we aren't at the US stage of medical care though heading that way.
We are pretty excited still. We won't be able to wait and save them up, but have discussed doing some retrospective catching up for GoT and some others. I'd need to see the last few eps of OITNB to refresh too. Apparently it's coming April as well.
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